Carnaross 1-10, St Colmcilles 0-10

Carnaross upset the odds on Sunday morning to claim their second victory of the league campaign with a deserved victory over table-toppers St Colmcilles.

The home side sprang out of the blocks despite the heavy conditions and took the lead through full forward Dermot McGee before St Colmcilles responded with a point of their own.

Carnaross then put some daylight between the teams when Declan Reilly reacted fastest to gather the rebound after a long range effort from Niall McDonnell crashed off the post. The corner forward was hauled down by the Cilles keeper and Frank O’Reilly made no mistake from the resultant penalty, sending the keeper the wrong way. Jinxy corner forward Patrick McDermott added to the lead after cutting in from the left.

The Ross’ hard running approach and ball winning ability around the midfield created a platform for their forwards to thrive. However, the Cilles kept chipping away and had a chance to cut into the lead with a one-on-one goal chance denied by a fine save from Shane McNiffe. The sides traded points for the remainder of the half with O’Reilly adding four including two placed balls to give Carnaross a 1-7 to 6 lead at the half.

The second half was a tight, cagey affair with the visitors pushing for a way back into the game. However, their efforts were thwarted by Carnaross’ tenacious rear-guard. Tomás Plunkett and Stephen Flattery put in big hits while Pierce Fleming popped up with some crucial interceptions. A fine long range effort from McDermott and a pair of points from McGee proved enough to see the Ross home but only after McNiffe made sure of the win with a last minute reflex save to deny the Cilles a share of the spoils.

It was an impressive team performance from the home side who maintained their work rate throughout to see off last year’s senior quarter finalists. The victory sets them up nicely for the rest of the league with two wins from three.

Carnaross: Shane McNiffe, Jack Roche, Peter Farrelly, Ian Donoghue, Pierce Fleming, Tomás Plunkett, Stephen Flattery, Niall McDonnell, Cillian Comaskey, Killian Porter, Frank O’Reilly (1-04, 2f), Cian O’Reilly, Declan Reilly, Dermot McGee (0-4), Patrick McDermott (0-2). Subs: Liam Day for Reilly, John L McGee for Farrelly, Cian Gillic for Porter.

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